Kagawa is believed to be where Kobo Daishi was born. However Kagawa is the final stage of Nirvana, where the Shikoku Henro ends, rather than begins, in geographical terms. Many pilgrims will return to Ryozenji Temple One, in Tokushima, if that is where they started, to complete the cycle, or Mount Koyasan in Wakayama, Honshu, which many strongly affirm is the origin of the Henro.
The Henro, its origins, its history, are all bundled up in an inseparable mixture of fact, myth, and legend. Presumably the allocation of temples to prefectures is based on the location of these temples when prefectures were created. But I have been curious about the neat division of Stages according to regions. Guardians of temples are known to have squabbled over who gets what, claiming proprietary rights over names of the temples, the temples themselves, who should have which relic, whether Kobo did this or that and where, all of which has impeded the necessary cooperation to get the Shikoku Henro declared a World Heritage Site.
Marugame in Kagawa is a biggish city around which many of the Nirvana temples are clustered. There is little Henro support, no English spoken, none of the usual maps that show how to get to the temples using public transport, no bus connections, even. It will be sink or swim for me in Marugame relying on my own devices. But one has to get through Nirvana to reach Nirvana. Nirvana, anyway, is commonly reported as a state of mind. I suppose that means whether I sulk and pout in Marugame, or just get the hell on with it and find my way, is up to me.
This final stage in Kagawa is where many rhapsodize about how the journey continues, albeit mentally, in a change of spirit, with the ending being the beginning of a new life. I know I am dreading Okuboji Temple 88, because I don’t know how changed I will be. It is also whether I would or should be worrying about it.
There is no Temple 89. I expect though Temple 89 will be what we carry in our hearts, how we continue the journey, as whoever we have become, if at all, but hopefully with something we have gained from being on the Henro. Perhaps many repeat the journey because they can’t give it up. Or maybe they are still questing for Nirvana.
I learned the literal meaning of Nirvana is when one is able to "cool" or " extinguish" the flames of desire. The Henro is ultimately a walk to search for peace, both within us, and around us. I like this about the Henro, it is why I am hooked on it, or have the hots for it. It is not the same as having the hots for George Clooney - that has to be extinguished. But walking and visiting temples to feel at peace is a very valid desire indeed for a Henro. Nirvana is not having this desire extinguished, but fulfilled. When I stand at Okubonji, it is all I desire.
